AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Democrats are hoping Kamala Harris’ background and experience help propel the Biden-led ticket.

What You Need To Know

  • Harris is the first Black woman and the first south Asian woman to run for vice president on a major party ticket

  • Biden needs to get Black voters to turn out in order to have a shot at being competitive in Texas

  • Republicans have pushed back pointing to her low polling during the primary. 

Harris is the first Black woman and the first south Asian woman to run for vice president on a major party ticket. She also hails from a family of immigrants and attended a historically Black university, which is unlike any other vice presidential candidate before her.

“I think it definitely will create visibility and funding opportunities. We can’t do these type of things that we do in terms of learning without funding,” said Carla Brailey, the vice chair of the Texas Democratic Party, a professor at Texas Southern University and a graduate of Howard University.

Both Brailey and TDP Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa say they see Harris giving a boost to Biden in the state. Biden needs to get Black voters to turn out in order to have a shot at being competitive in Texas and they believe she’ll help motivate them to head to the polls.

“We are going to win this election, if we win it in November, by a small margin,” Hinojosa said. “And that margin is going to be determined by turnout. And that turnout is critical in the African American, the Latino and the Asian American communities. And with Sen. Harris, you really hit all three of those segments of the base of the Democratic party.”

Republicans have pushed back pointing to her low polling during the primary.